Ironing machine



Sept. 26, 1944. A. H. PETERS IRONING MACHINE Filed Sept. 29, 1938 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Spt. 26, 1944. A. H. PETERS IRONING MACHINE Filed Sept. 29, 1938 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 fizderza or' NNW flgizurfiPefers /17z4 or c s- Sept. 26, 1944. A. H. PETERS IRONING MACHINE Filed Sept. 29, 1938 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 P 1944- A. H. PETERS 2,358,824

IRONING MACHINE Filed Sept. 29, 1938 6 Sheets-SheetA 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 &

fnuezu or IIIIIIIIIII IIII Sept. 26, 1944. A. H. PETERS IRONING MACHINE Filed Sept. 29, 1938 6 Shets-Sheet 6 Patented Sept. 26, 1944 moms MACHINE Arthur E. Peters, Glencoe, 111., using: to American Ironing Machine 00., Algonquin, Ill.,

a corporation of Illinois Application September 29, 1938, Serial No. 232,379 14 Claims. (Cl. 38-61) The invention relates generally to ironing machines and more particularly to ironing machines of the roll and shoe type.

' The general object of the invention is to provide an ironing machine suitable for domestic use, .which requires a minimum of service to keep it in working order, which is so constructed as to require very little skill to operate it, and which is controlled by devices requiring a minimum of effort to eflect their operation. I

More specifically. it is an object to provide an ironing machine so constructed that its parts can stand a long period of use, under circumstances where relatively little expert careis given,

before any servicing thereof is required, and that its operation can easily be taught to a person of very little mechanical skill with a minimum effort required of such person to operate the controls of the machine.

It is also an object to provide an ironing machine having novel clutch means for causing the power drive torotate the roll or to shift the shoe relative to the roll, each clutch means including a member for causing the clutch to engage, which member is not at any time under the driving load and hence may be shifted without undue eflort.

Another object is to provide an ironing machine in which the clutch means for connecting the shoe-shifting mechanism to the power drive is of simple construction and prevents any clicking noise occurring when the clutch means is disengaged.

Still another object is to provide an ironing machine in which the clutch means for connecting the roll with the power drive and the clutch means for connecting the shoe-shifting mechanism with the power drive are of such construction that they may be by a simple structure interlocked to start and stop the roll when the shoe is moved toward .and away from the roll, said structure also permltting'the roll to remain disengaged from the power drive when it is desired to use the machine for pressing.

A further object is to provide a novel shoeshifting mechanism of simple construction providing adequate leverage for forcing the shoe against the roll and including a resilient element to hold the shoe in yielding relation thereto.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view on a reduced scale of an ironing machine embodying the features of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a view of the underside of the table shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. '3 is a fragmentary end view partially in section of the right-hand end of the machine shown in Fig. 1.

. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary front .elevational view partially in section.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary plan view with parts of the casing broken away to show the drive structure.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 8-6 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line l-'! of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. '7.

Fig. 9 is a sectional view taken on the line 99 of Fig. 7.

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line Ill-l0 of Fig. 5. I

Fig. 11 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line ll-l'l of Fig. 10.

Fig. 12 isa vertical sectional view taken on the line l2-l2 of Fig. 10.

Fig. 13 is a perspective view of a clutch spring shown in its assembled relation in Fig. 10.

Fig. 14 is an end view similar to Fig. 3, partially in section, of a modified form of machine.

Fig. 15 is a-fragmentary vertical section of the machine shown in Fig. 14 in a plane transverse to the plane of Fig. 14.

The machine shown in the drawings and described herein is of' the type comprising a rotatable roll and a heated shoe adapted to be shifted toward and away from the roll; While some of the features claimed are limited to this type of machine, other of these features are equally applicable to a machine in which the roll is shifted toward the shoe.

The machine comprises generally a roll 20 and a shoe 2!. by a roll shaft 22 extending outwardly from a casing 23 housing mechanism for driving the roll and mechanism for shifting the shoe. Both the roll-driving mechanism and the shoe-shifting mechanism are adapted to be driven by a power drive constituting in the present instance a motor 24. For purposes of illustration, the machin shown is of the table type, Thus the casing 23 is mounted on a table top 25 supported by suitable legs 26, and the motor 24 is preferably suspended from the underside of the table top by means of a cushioned bracket 21.

The roll is supported on and driven- The motor is provided with a pulley 33 having a belt 3| extending upwardly through the table top and into the casing 23 to drive a pulley 32. The pulley 32 is mounted on a shaft 33 which is iournaled in the left-hand wall of the casing 23 and an intermediate wall 34 provided therein. The intermediate wall 34 divides the casing 23 into two compartments, the left-hand compartment, as shown in Figs. 4 and 7, serving to provide space for most of the gearing and being completely closed so that it may carry oil for lubricating various parts of the gearing. On the inner or left-hand end of the drive shaft 33 is rigidly secured a pinion 35 meshing with a drive gear 36 loosely mounted on a stub shaft 31. From the drive gear 38, power is distributed to the roll and to the shoe-shifting mechanism.

The roll driving structure To drive the roll. the drive gear 33 has its hub 40 (see Fig. '7) rigidly secured to a pinion 4| rotatably mounted on the stub shaft 31. The pinion meshes with a gear 42 rotatably mounted on the roll shaft 22 and constituting the driving member of a clutch means for driving the roll shaft 22.

The roll clutch means, shown generally in Figs. and 7, and in more detail in Figs. to 13, comprises a drivingmember and a driven member recessed to enclose a coiled spring expandable by unwinding so as to frictionally grip the two members and thereby effect a driving enga ement therebetween. The clutch means" further includes a device for causing the spring to unwind and effect its driving engagement, which device is easily shaftable into and out of engagement with the spring, since it does not carry the driving load but merely causes the spring to unwind. Thus very little effort is required to operate the clutch means.

As mentioned above, the gear 42 is rotatably mounted on the roll shaft 22 and constitutes the driving member of the roll clutch means, while the driven member in this instance comprises a sleeve 43 rigidly secured to the roll shaft 22 by means of a pin 44. The sleeve 43 is in end-toend abutting relation with a hub portion 4-! of the gear 42, and the sleeve 43 and hub portion 45 are provided with alined circular recesses in their abutting faces in which a coiled clutch spring 48 is located, part of the spring being located in each recess and the spring as a .whole surrounding the roll drive shaft 22.

The clutch spring 46 is held for rotation with and in the direction of the gear 42. To this end the normal external diameter of the spring '46 is the same as the internal diameter of the cylindrical recess in the gear 42 and thus has a snug fit therein. To cause the spring to rotate with the gear 42 and in the same direction as such rotation, a small pocket is provided in the inner end of the cylindrical recess in the gear 42 andin the pocket is slidably mounted a pin 53 spring pressed outwardly of the pocket by a small compression spring ii. The pin 63 is normally held by the spring so'that the end of the pin lies in abutment with the end of the clutch spring 46. The spring serves to hold the pin 53 in the pocket. The pin 50 therefore causes the spring to rotate with the gear 42 and serves as an abutment for that end of the spring when the latter is unwound to effect a clutching engagement. Should it be desired to manually turn the roll forward, the end face of the clutch spring 44 produces a camming action on the end of the pin I3 and forces it back into its pocket against the compression of the small spring I.

As mentioned above, the clutch means includes a device for causing the clutch spring 48 to unwind and therefore expand into driving engagement with the driven member or sleeve 43. For this purpose a shiftable collar "is mounted on the sleeve 43 for a sliding movement longitudinally thereof. The collar 52 carries a pin or finger 53 extending through a peripheral slot 54 in the sleeve 43 and into the cylindrical recess in the sleeve 43. Preferably the finger 53 is in the form of a. set screw. The slot 54 is of sufilcient length so that. as the collar 52 is slid longitudinally, the finger 53 is movable into and out of the path of the end of the clutch spring 48.

In order that the finger 53 may quickly effect a driving engagement, a sleeve 55 extends within the clutch spring 48 and its outer end is provided with a flange having a plurality of peripheral notches 56. The end of the clutch spring 48 is bent longitudinally, as indicated at 51, to lie within one of the notches 53 so that the sleeve 55 rotates with the'end of the spring. The end of the finger 53 is of such size that when shifted longitudinally into clutch-engaging position, the said end of the finger will enter any one of the notches 56. Thus when the finger so engages the sleeve 55, the adjacent end of the spring is held by the finger,-and the rotation of the other end of the spring caused by the rotation of the gear 42 causes the spring to unwind. Such unwinding of the spring effects an expansion thereof, or an increase in diameter, which causes the spring to frictionally engage the interior surface of the driven member or sleeve 43. Thus the driven member 43 will rotate with the gear 42, and since the sleeve 43 is rigid with the roll shaft 22, the roll is rotated.

Since it is desired to start and stop the roll, means is provided for causing engagement and disengagement of the roll clutch means by shifting the collar 52 longitudinally of the driven member 43. To this end a plurality of coiled springs 60, three inthe present instance, have one end fitted into pockets in the collar 52, while their other ends bear against a plate 6| rigidly secured as by screws to the driven member 43. The springs 60 thus tend to shift the collar 52 to such position that the finger 53 is in engagement with the sleeve 55 and causes the clutch spring 46 to unwind and expand into driving position. To hold the finger 53 out of engagement with the sleeve 55 a shifter fork 82 bears against the opposite end of the collar 52.

Structure for connecting the power drive with the shoe-shifting mechanism As mentioned hereinbefore, power is also taken from the drive gear '36 for operating the shoeshifting mechanism. In the present instance the shoe-shifting mechanism is of the eccentric type, that is, an eccentric 63 (see Figs. 3 and 7) is utilized to shift the shoe toward and away from the roll. The eccentric 63 is rigidly secured to the stub shaft 31 by means of being mounted on a squared or flattened end portion 84 of said shaft. The stub shaft 31 also has rigidly secured thereto by means of a pin 85 (see Fig. '1) a driven member 86. The driven member 46 is in end-to-end abutting relation with the hub 43 of the drive gear 33 and the two are centrally recessed to receive a coiled clutch spring 61 operating similarly to the clutch spring in the roll clutch means. The end of clutch spring 61, located in the hub 40, is held for rotation with and in the direction of the drive gear 38 by means 01' a sliding pin 18 (seeFlg. 9) spring pressed outwardly into the path of the ad- Jacent end of the spring 61.

The other end of the clutch spring 61, located in the driven member 66, is provided with a sleeve 1| extending inside of the spring and having a flange at its outer end peripherally notched to receive the bent-over end 12 of the clutch spring in one of the notches. To cause the clutch spring 61 to unwind and expand into driving engagement with the driven member66, a finger 13 is carried by the driving member. The finger 13 has one end 14 of a hook-like form to extend through a peripheral notch 15 in the driven member 56 and into the cylindrical recess therein so that the end 14 may engage in one of the notches of the flanged sleeve 1|. When the finger 13 has thus engaged the flange sleeve 1|, the ad- Jacent end 12 or the spring 61 is held in a fixed relation to the driven member 66 and the rotation oi the driving gear 36 causes the spring 61 to unwind. As in the case of the roll clutch spring, the clutch spring 61 is thus expanded into driving engagement with the driven member 66, causing the latter to rotatewith the drive gear 36 and rotate the eccentric.

The finger 13 is pivotally supported intermediate its ends by means of a pin 16 mounted on a lug 11 extending from the driven member 66. The finger 13 is also normally urged into is spring-engaging position by means of a compression spring 80 (see Fig. 6) bearing against the finger adjacent the outer end thereof, the spring .88 being supported by a lug 8| extending from the driven member 66.

The eccentric 63 shifts the shoe from one position to the other by rotating from one point to a point diametrically opposite thereto. Thus the finger 13 is arranged so that it may be brought into clutch-engaging position by the spring 88 and then disengaged after the driven member has rotated through one-half revolution. To this end a pair of tripping members 82 are provided, the tripping members being located at diametrically opposite points in the path of the outer end 83 of the finger 13. The tripping members are arranged to be moved out of the path of the finger 13 to permit the latter to move into clutch-engaging position. As shown herein the tripping members 82 are carried on a yoke 84 pivotally supported by a pin 85 carried on a bracket 86 secured to an adjacent portion of the casing 23. In the preferred form, the bracket 86 has two spaced ears through which the pivot pin 85 extends, and the yoke 84 also is provided with a pair of ears 81 mounted on the pin 85 between the ears of thebracket, thus giving a wide bearing for the yoke 86.

Each tripping member 82 has a slanting surface adapted to be contacted by the end 83 of,

the finger 13 to swing the finger on the pin 18 out of engagement with the clutch spring. Normally, as soon as the end 14 of the finger 13 moves out of the notch of the clutch spring sleeve 1|, th ,driven member 66 will stop rotating and the tripping member will have no further camming action on the finger. When this occurs the nd 14 of the finger will be so close to the flange portion of the sleeve 1| that each notch therein would cause a clicking noise as it passed by the end 14. To avoid such clicking noise and insure having the finger clear of 13 first contacts the tripping member 82, the

end 14 is held by its frictional engagement in a notch in the sleeve 1|. As soon as the end 14 clears the notch by the pivotal movement about the pin 16, it is free to swing away from the sleeve 1| to the position shown in Fig. 6 under the influence of the spring 80 urging, the finger 13 the sleeve 1|, the pivotal support for the finger 78 about the member 82 as a fulcrum, to the extent permitted by the slot 90. Thus the end 14 is swung a substantial distance away from the flange portion of the sleeve 1| so that no clicking noise can occur.

The yoke 84 is adapted to be manually swung on the pivot pin 85 so that the shoe-shifting mechanism may be operated at the will of the operator.

The shoe-shifting clutch is interlocked with the roll clutch so that, when the shoe is shifted toward the roll, the roll clutch is permitted to engage to cause rotation of the roll, and when the shoe'is shifted away from the roll, the roll clutch is disengaged to stop rotation of the roll. To this end, the interlock comprises a lever 9| (see Figs. 5, 6 and 7) pivotally supported on the pivot pin '85, which also supports the yoke 84. The lever 9| is of generally rectangular plateiike form and has a pair of ears 92 mounted on the pin 85, the yoke 84 being apertured as at 93 to provide space for the ears 92. The upper end of the lever 9| has a squared aperture through which projects the squared end 94.01 a push rod 95. The other end of the push rod is of reduced diameter, as indicated at 96, to extend through an aperture in the shifting fork 62 of the roll clutch means.

The lever 9| is adapted to be automatically swung on the pivot pin 85 to force theshiftable member 52 of the roll clutch means to its clutchdisengaging position against the pressure of the roll clutch springs 60. To efiect such automatic swinging of the lever 9|, the driven member 66 of the shoe clutch means is provided with a cam 91 flaring outwardly at one point on the driven member and having a slanting surface adapted to rotate into contact with th lower. end of the lever 9|. The cam 91 is so located relative to the finger 13 of the shoe clutch means that, when the shoe is moved away from the roll, the cam 91 has swung the lever 9| to cause disengagement of the roll clutch means. In order to hold the lever 9|, the push rod 95, and the shifting fork 52 in a tight non-rattling relation, the squared end 94 of the push rod 95 extends beyond the lever 9| toward the intermediate wall 34 of the casing, and a coiled spring 98 surrounds the squared end 94 and bears against the lever 9| at one end and against the intermediate wall of the casing at the other end.

The control of the machine The roll clutch means, in normal operation, is adapted to be engaged when the shoe is shifted toward the roll and to be disengaged when the shoe is shifted away from the roll. However, it is sometimes desired to utilize the roll for pressing, that is, to place articles between the roll and the shoe and merely move the shoe toward the elongated, as shown at 98 .structed so that it may be utilized for such pressing operation. To this end the shifter fork 02 is pivotally supported by a bracket I (see Figs. and 8). The shifter fork has a portion IOI extending forwardly from the bracket I00, which portion is provided with a flat surface I02 adapted to enact with a cam I03 carried on the inner end of a shaft I04 extending through the front wall of the casing 23. On the outer end of the shaft I04 is a hand lever I05 for operating the cam I03. Thus the cam I03 may be turned to swing the shifting fork 52 so that the latter will hold the shiftable member 52 of the roll clutch means in asses the yoke 04 to swing the tripping members 32 out clutch-disengaged position. With this structure,

regardless of the position of the lever 5| through which the roll clutch means is interlocked with the shoe-shifting clutch means, the roll clutch is held disengaged. While the springs 60, acting on the shiftable member 52 of the roll clutch means, are normally sufllciently strong to shift the shifting fork 82, a small spring I06 may be provided to bear against a portion of the casing 23 and assist in swinging the shifting fork 52. The spring I00 preferably is seated in a socket provided in the shifting fork 52.-

For manually controlling the operation of the of the path of the finger I3.

- The shoe-shifting and supporting mechanism The eccentric 83 is adapted to shift the shoe toward and away from the roll. Preferably when the eccentric is in its lowest-position, the shoe is in its forward or roll-contacting position, and when the eccentric is in its uppermost position, the shoe is pushed away from the roll. To effect such operation of the'shoe, the eccentric 03 is provided with a pitman I22 (see Figs. 3 and 4). The portion of the pitman surrounding the eccentric 33 is split, as shown at I23, with the portions on each side of the split provided with ears I24. A pin I extends freely through one ear I24 and is threaded into the other ear with a spring I23 located between the head of the pin and the free ear I24 to resiliently draw the two cars together. Thus the upper portion of the pitman is resiliently clamped around the eccentric 03 and serves as a brake therefor. The braking action thereby attained serves to immediately stop the driven member 33 from rotating the shoe, the yoke 04, upon which the tripping members 32 are formed, has a forwardly extending arm III (see Figs. 5 and 6). The forward'end of the arm H0 is adapted to be operated either by a manual control or a knee-actuated control. The manual control comprises a push rod I I I extending through the left-hand wall of the casing 23. The outer end of the push rod III is preferably provided with a button or knob II2, while the inner end bears against the face of the arm H0. The arm H0 is held in contact with the push rod III and the latter is held in its outward position by a spring II3 extending between the arm 0 and the intermediate wall 34 of the casing 23. When the push rod III is casing against the presthe-tripping members 32 pushed inwardly of the sure of the spring H3, are moved out of the path of the finger 13. When the push rod I I I is released, the spring I I3 moves the tripping members 82 back into tripping position, such movement of the tripping members 32 being limited by a stop comprising a screw II4 threaded into the upper end of the yoke 04 and adapted to abut against the intermediate wall 34 of the casing when the tripping memhere 32 are directly in the path of the finger 13.

The means by which the machine can be controlled by a knee action comprises in the present instance a cam II5 (see Figs. 5 and 6) carried on the upper end of a vertical shaft I I6 iournaled in the casing 23 and extending downwardly below the table top 25. On the lower end of the shaft H6 is a forwardly extending arm II1 (see Figs. 2 and 5). Slidably supported under the table for movement longitudinally thereof is a knee-control bar I20 having its right-hand end engaging the arm H1 and urged to the left by moment the finger 13 is disengaged from the clutch spring 61. By this structure the eccentric 53 is stopped in its extreme upper and lower positions. Preferably the eccentric 03 is made of an impregnated wood providing suflicient lubrication between it and the pitman. The pitman is held in place by a plate I21 secured on the outer face of the eccentric 63.

The pitman I22 extends downward and is pivotally connected to the free end of one arm I30 of a bell crank pivotally supported within the casing 23 by means of a pivot pin I3I. The arm I30 of the bell crank preferably extends substantially horizontally when the shoe is moved toward the roll, as shown in Fig. 3, while the other arm, indicated at I32, extends downwardly and rearwardly. The two arms of the bell crank are preferably bifurcated so that the members to which they are connected fit within the bifurcation, andthe arm I32 is preferably longer than the arm I30-to provide a sufficient range of movement.

The arm I32 of the bell crank has pivotally connected to its free end a link I33 extending downwardly for connection with the free end of an arm I34 loosely mounted on a rock shaft I35 extending under the table parallel and adjacent the rear edge thereof. The other end of the rock shaft I35 is located adjacent the middle of the table and supports an arm I30 carrying the shoe structure. The rock shaft I35 is preferably journaled in a tubular casing rigidly secured to the table.

To'effect movement of the rock shaft I35, the arm I34 is resiliently connected with an arm I31 rigidly secured to the rock shaft I35. In the preferred form the loose arm I34 is channel shaped in cross section, and the arm I31 is located withv in the channel. To resiliently connect the two arms, a pin I40 is rigidly secured to the free end of the arm I31 and extends downwardly through the web of the channel of the loose arm away from the roll, the loose arm I34 is raised, and a screw I43 threaded in the web portion of the arm I34 isadapted to abut against a lug I44 formed on the arm I31 to positively move the shoe away from the roll.

The arm I32 of the bell crank and the link I33 connected to the loose arm I34 are so positioned that they constitute a toggle joint efl'ecting a powerful pressure oi the shoe against the roll.

The shoe-carrying arm I36 extends upwardly through the table top to support the shoe in a position at the rear of the roll 26. Preferably the shoe is releasably connected to the arm I36 so that it may be moved away from the roll in emergencies when the shoe-shifting mechanism is in the position for holding the shoe against the roll. To this end, the upwardly extending arm I36 is channel shaped and a shoe-supporting arm I45 is pivotally mounted within the channel by means of a pin I46 spaced above the rock shaft I35. The shoe-supporting arm I45 extends above the arm I36 and at its upper end pivotally supports a bracket I41 carrying the shoe 2|. The bracket I41 is resiliently connected to the shoesupporting arm I34 by a flat spring I56 which permits the shoe to pivot on the upper end of the arm I34 to adjust it to the position of the roll and the articles being ironed as they pass between the roll and the shoe.

In order to hold the arm I45 rigid with the arm '36, a cam lock is provided. As shown herein the cam lock comprises a manually operable lever II pivoted within the channel of the arm I36 and having a cam I52 bearing against the shoesupporting arm I45. By swinging the hand lever I5I to release the cam lock, the shoe-supporting arm I45 may swing about the pivot I46 relative to the arm I36. A small compression spring I53 is mounted within a socket in the shoe-supporting arm I34 and bears against the web of the channel of the arm I36 to swing the shoe away from the roll. Thus when the eccentric tion to hold the shoe against the roll, release of the cam look by the hand lever I5I permits the shoe 'to be immediately moved away from the roll. When the eccentric is in such position as to hold the shoe away from the roll, release of the cam lock permits the shoe to swing farther away from the roll and provide greater space for cleaning the shoe. The shoe is preferably of the electrically heated type and an electrical conduit I54 may'extend downwardly from the shoe and into the interior of the arm I36.

In the modified form of the device shown in Figs. 14 and 15, the shoe-shifting mechanism is of a slightly different construction but attaining many of the advantages of the preferred form. In the modified form, a pitman I66 is provided for the eccentric which extends downwardly to a point below the table top and is there secured to an arm I6I mounted on the end of a rock shaft I62 journaled in brackets rigid with the table. The rock shaft I62 extends toward the middle of the table and is there provided with a rearwardly extending arm I63 connected by a link I64 to the lower end of an arm I65 loosely mounted on a pivot pin I66. The pivot pin I66 is located on an axis slightly above the table top and is supported by brackets I61 extending upwardly from under the table top.

Mounted on the pivot pin I66 is a shoe-carrying arm I16 constructed similarly to the shoecarrying arm I36 shown in the preferred form. The shoe-carrying arm I16 is adapted to be reis in posi-- siliently connected to the arm I65 and to this end a pin I1I extends from the lower end of the arm I16 through the arm I66 with a compression spring I12 mounted on the pin to resiliently cause the arm I16 to move with the arm I 66.

Operation of the machine Assume that the motor is running and that the shoe is away from the roll. To iron, the operator either presses the knob II2 by hand, or moves the knee lever I2I by her knee toward the right. Either action causes the arm II6 to swing the yoke 84 about the pivot pin 85 so that the tripping members of the finger 13 of the shoe-operated clutch means. The spring 86 thereupon causes the finger 13 to pivot and its end 14 moves into one of the notches in the flanged portion of the sleeve 1|, as shown in Fig. 8. Since the sleeve 1| rotates with the clutch spring 61, and the latter is constantly rotated by the drive gears'36, the bent end 12 of the clutch spring 61 is temporarily held against rotation, thereby causing the clutch spring to unwind. Such unwinding of the clutch spring expands it into frictional driving engagement with the interior surface of the cylindrical recess of the driven member 66. Thus the driven member 66 will rotate with the drive gear 36.

Since the driven member 66 and the eccentric 63 are both rigid with the stub shaft 31, the eccentric is turned from its upper position, which it occupies when the shoe is away from the roll, toward its lower position. Such movement of the eccentric swings the arm I32 of the bell crank clockwise, as viewed in Fig. 3, and depresses the loose arm I34 to rock the shaft I35 and move the shoe toward the roll. It is apparent from Fig. 3 that the arm I32 of the bell crank and the link I33 connecting said arm to the loose arm I 34, constitute a toggle so that a heavy pressure is available for holding the shoe against the roll.

The loose arm I34, having a resilient connection with the arm I31, gives a resilient action to the shoe, permitting it to accommodate varying thicknesses in the article passing between the roll and the shoe. Should it be desired to move the shoe away from the roll during ironing, release of the cam look by pushing the hand lever I5I rearwardly permits the shoe-supporting arm I45 to swing relative to the arm I36 and thus move the shoe away from the roll.

Since it is desired to move the eccentric 63 through a half revolution to move the shoe from one extreme position to the other, rotation of the finger 13 with the driven member 66 through a half revolution brings the outer end 83 of the finger into contact with the other tripping member 82 and withdraws the end 14 of the finger from engagement with the sleeve 1|. The clutch spring 61 is therefore no longer held in its unwound condition and returns to it normal diameter, thus disengaging the driven member 66. When the driven member 66 is so disengaged from the spring, the braking action on the eccentric of the pitman I22, effected by the peripheral friction on the eccentric, immeditaely stops rotation of the eccentric and leaves the shoe in the corresponding position.

The clutch spring 61 with its notched sleeve 1I continues to rotate with the drive gear 36. Since the end 63 of the finger 13 is at such time bearing against one of the tripping member 82, the compression spring 86 swings the finger about it's contact with the tripping member as a fulcrum, away from the notched sleeve to the 82 are moved out of the path extent permitted by the elong tion in of the pivot pin hole in the finger 18.

When the eccentric is at its uppermost position and the shoe is away from the roll, the cam l! on the driven member I! is in contact with the lever ll carried on the pivot pin ll, as shown in Fig. '7. .In such position of' the lever ii, the push rod 85 holds the shifting fork l! to the right, as viewed in Fig. '1. thus compressing the springs ll of the roll clutch means and holding the finger ll out of contact with thesleeve Bl which coopcrates with the roll clutch spring I. In such position the spring 4!, rotating with the gear 42, runs free of the driven member I and the roll remains stationary.

As the driven member 88 of the shoe clutch means rotates to turn the eccentric to its lowermost position, the cam 91 is moved out of contact with the lever ll. Compression springs l in the roll clutch means are then free to move the collar I2 to the right, as shown in Fig. 10, and the finger I moves into one of the notches of the sleeve 65. The clutch spring 48 is thereby caused to unwind and expand into driving relation with the driven member 48, thus rotating the roll shaft 22.

When it is desired to use the machine for pressing, the hand lever ll! may be turned to bring the cam I03 into the position shown in Fig. 5, thereby holding the shifter fork 02 against the collar 82 and preventing driving engagement of the roll clutch means.

From the foregoing description, it is evident that I have provided an ironing machine constructed so that it requires very little skill to operate it and is controlled by devices requiring a minimum of eifort to effect their operation. The clutch means utilized for connecting the power drive to the roll and to the shoe-shifting mechanism is of such'character that the shiftable member thereof is not at any time under a driving load and hence may be shifted without undue eifort. In each of these clutch means the driving engagement is between the clutch spring and the adjacent surface of the cylindrical recess in the driven member in which it is positioned, and such drivin engagement is caused by the unwinding of the spring. The force required to effect such unwinding is very small so that there is very little load upon the finger which holds the spring in unwound position. Because this load is small, the lingerie easily disengaged. Thus very little eflort is required to disengage either of these clutch means. As described above, the finger 13 of the shoe-operating clutch means is shifted entirely clear of the notches in the sleeve H so that no choking noise occurs during operation of the machine. In clutches of other forms this difficulty has been experienced and elaborate means have been utilized to avoid such noise. The present construction aifords a simple mode of avoiding it. The shoe-shifting mechanism provides adequate leverage for forcing the shoe against the roll because of the toggle action of its parts, and the resilient connection included in the mechanism permits the shoe to yield to accommodate varying thicknesses.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, an ironing element eooperable therewith, a shaft supporting said roll, a driving member loosely mounted on said shaft, a driven member rigid with said shaft, said member having complementary cylindrical recesses surrounding said shaft, a coiled spring located in said recesses and having its end in said driving member held for rotation with and in the direction of said driving member and its end in said driven member normally free thereof, said driven member having a slot in its periphery opening into the recesstherein, shiitable means on said driven member having a finger extending into said slot and adapted to be shifted to engage the end of the spring-to cause it to unwind and thereby expand into driving engagement with the walls of said recesses to connect said driven and driving members and drive said roll, and means for shifting said shiftable means.

2. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, an ironing element cooperable therewith, a shaft for driving said roll, a driving member loosely mounted on said shaft and having a cylindrical recess, a driven member rigid with said shaft and having a cylindrical recess alined with the recess in said driving member, a coiled spring located partly in each recess, means in said driving member engaging the end of said spring for holding said end for rotation in the direction of rotation of said driving member, a fianged element fitting within the other end of the spring and having a plurality of notches in the flange, the end of the spring being bent to fit in one of said notches, said driven member having a peripheral notch opening into the recess therein, a shiftable member having a finger extending into said notch and adapted to be shifted into one of the notches of said fiange to unwind the spring and effect a driving connection between the driving and driven members to rotate the roll, and means for shifting said shiftable member.

3. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, an ironing element cooperable therewith, a shaft for driving said roll, a driving member loosely mounted on said shaft, a driven member rigid with said shaft, said driving and driven member being in end-to-end abutting relation with their abutting ends recessed, a coiled spring located partly in the recessed end of each member, the end of said spring in said driving member being held for rotation in the direction of rotation of said driving member, said driven member having a radial notch opening into the recess therein, a collar mounted on said driven member for rotation therewith but shiftable longitudinally thereof. said collar having a finger extending through said notch into the recess to engage the end of the spring to cause it to unwind and effect a driving relation between the driving and driven members.

4. In an ironing machine, the combination of a. roll, means for driving the roll, a shoe movable toward and from the roll, a driving member, an eccentric for moving the shoe, a driven member rotatable with said eccentric. said driving and driven members having alined cylindrical recesses, a coiled spring located partly in each recess and held for rotation with said driving member, said spring being expansible upon unwinding to effect a driving engagement with said member, a device engageable with the end of the spring in the driven member to cause it positively to unwind and expand into driving relation with the driven member, and means for disengaging said device from the spring at each half revolution of the driven member, said means being shiftable away from said device to permit it to engage the spring.

5. In an ironing machine of the roll and shoe type, the combination of a driving member, mechanism for shifting the shoe toward and from the roll including an eccentric, and means member comprising a driven member'rotatable with said eccentric and in end-to-end relation to the driving member, said driving and driven members having concentric recesses, a coiled spring located partly in each recess and held for rotation with said driving member, a finger car ried by the driven member and shiftable into engagement with the end of the spring in said driven member to cause it to unwind and expand into driving relation with said driven member, spring means tending to shift said finger into springengaging position, and means shiftable into and out of the path of said finger at diametrically opposite points in said path to disengage said finger from said spring.

6. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, a shoe, 9, driving member, mechanism for shifting the shoe toward and from the roll including an eccentric, and means for connecting said eccentric with the driving member comprising a driven member rotatable with'said ec-' centric and in end-to-end relation to the driving member, said driving and driven members having .concentric recesses, a coiled spring located partly in each recess and held for rotation with said driving member, said driven member having a peripheral notch opening into the recess therein, a finger pivoted on said driven member and swingable through said notch to engage the end of the spring to cause it to unwind and expand into driving relation with said driven member, spring means carried by said driven member tending to swing said finger into spring-engaging position, a pair of tripping members normally lying at opposite points in the path of said finger to disengage the finger from said spring, and means for shiftin'g said tripping members out of said path to permit the finger to engage the spring.

7. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, a shoe, a power drive. an eccentric-operated the end of said spring being bent to enter one of said notches, a finger having a pin and slot connection intermediate its ends for pivotally pporting it on said drivenlmember with one oi its ends swingable into engagement with a notch in said flanged member to cause the spring to unwind, spring means carried by said driven member'and bearing against said' finger between its pivot and the other end of the finger and urging the finger into engagement with the flanged member, and a pair 01' tripping members normally lying in the path of said other end of the finger to swing it out of engagement with the flanged member and shii'table out of said path to permit the finger to engage the flanged member, the slot of said'pin and slot connection being elongated to permit said springmeans to shift the finger about either tripping member as a fulcrum to move the finger clear 01' said flanged member.

9. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, a shoe shiitable toward and from the roll, a power drive, clutch means for connecting the roll to the power drive including a shiitable member for holding the clutch means disengaged and spring means for moving the clutch means into engaged position, shoe-shifting mechanism, clutch means for connecting the power drive with said mechanism including a'driven member, a shiftable finger for efl'ecting engagement of the shoe clutch means, a fixed bracket carrying a pivot pin, a tripping member pivotally supported by said pin for disengaging said finger at diametrically opposite points, and a connection between the two clutch means for disengaging the roll clutch means when the shoe is moved away from shoe-shifting mechanism, a driving member contrally recessed, a coiled spring located in the recesses in both members and being held for rotation with said driving member, said spring being expansible upon unwinding to efiect a driving engagement with said driven member, a finger pivotally supporting intermediate its ends on said driven member with one of its ends swingable into engagement with the end of the spring to cause it to unwind, spring means carried by said driven member and urging said finger into engagement with the spring, and a pair of tripping members normally positioned at diametrically opposite points in the path of the other end 01 said finger to swing it out of engagement with said spring, said tripping members being shiftable out of said path to release said finger for engaging said spring.

8. In an ironing machine of the roll and shoe type having a power drive and an eccentricoperated shoe-shifting mechanism, the combination of a driving member connected to the power drive, a driven member connected to the eccentric, said members being centrally recessed, a coiled spring located in the recesses in both members and being held for rotation with said driving member, said spring being expansible upon unwinding to efiect a driving engagement with clutch means 'for connecting said driven member, a flanged member lothe roll, said connection comprising a lever pivotally supported by said pin, a push rod connecting one end of said lever with said shii'table member, and a cam on said driven member rotatable into engagement with the other end of said lever upon rotation of said driven member in moving the shoe away from the roll.

10. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, a shoe shiftable toward and from the roll, shoe-shifting mechanism, a power drive,

and a pair of clutch means arranged for connecting the power drive respectively with the roll and the shoe-shifting mechanism, each clutch means comprising driving and driven members concentrically recessed, a coiled spring located in the recesses of both members and ,rotating with the driving member, and a finger engageable with the end or the spring in the driven member to cause it to unwind and eflect a driving engagement with the driven member, manually controlled means for shifting the finger of the shoe-shifting clutch means'into and out of engagement with its spring, means for shifting the finger oi the roll clutch means out of engagement, and a cam rotatable with the driven member of the shoe-shifting clutch means and arranged to actuate said last-mentioned means a when the shoe is moved away from the roll to stop rotation of the roll. I

11. In an ironing machine, the combination of a roll, a shoe shii'table toward and from the roll, shoe-shifting mechanism, a power drive,

said mechanism comprising driving and driven members concentrically recessed, a coiled spring located in the recesses of both members and rotating with the driving member, and a finger rotatable with the driven member and engageable with the end or the spring in the driven memthe power drive with ber to cause it to unwind and effect a driving engagement with the driven member, an element having a pair of tripping members adapted to disengage said finger from the spring at each half revolution of the driven member, a manually operable push rod for shifting said tripping members out of the path of said finger, a cam for similarly shifting said trippin members, and knee-operated means for actuating said cam.

12. In an ironing machine comprising a rotatable roll, a shoe shiftable toward and from the roll, and a power drive, the combination of a rock shaft, means adapted to be operated by said power drive for rocking said shaft, a pivotal support, a, hollow shoe support supported by and encasing said pivotal support, an actuating arm extending into said shoe support and mounted on said pivotal suppo an arm on said rock shaft, a link connecting said arms and resilient means connecting said actuating arm with said shoe support.

13. In an ironing machine of the roll and shoe type having a power drive and a shoe shifting mechanism, means for connecting the power drive and said mechanism including a pair of rotatable members respectively connected with the power drive and said mechanism, one of said members having a plurality of notches in its periphery, a finger pivotally mounted on the other member and having a part movable into and out of driving engagement with the notched member, spring means acting upon the finger to carry said part into driving engagement with the notched member, and a tripping member normally lying in the path of the finger and operative thereon to swing it against the action of said spring means to carry said part out of engagement with the notched member, the pivotal mounting of the finger on its supporting member including a pin and a slot with the latter so shaped with respect to said pin as to permit bodily movement, of the finger. by said spring means about the tripping member as a fulcrum but limiting the movement of said finger in a longitudinal direction whereby said notch-engaging part on the finger is moved in a direction subassasas stantially radially of the notched member and clear of said notched member following disengagement of the finger-from the notched member, said tripping member being shiftable out of said path to reestablish the driving connection between said members.

14. In an ironing machine comprising a pair of relatively shiftable ironing elements, a power drive and mechanism for shifting one of said elements, means for disengageably connecting said power drive with said mechanism including a pair of rotatable members and a pivotal connecting element, one of said members normally rotating with the power drive and having a plurality of notches in its periphery, and the other member having a driving connection with said shifting mechanism and constituting a support for the connecting element, said connecting element comprising a finger having a notch-engaging portion, a pin carried by the supporting memher, said finger having an aperture having a diameter that is greater than the transverse diameter of said pin thereby loosely receiving said pin, a spring carried by the supporting member and acting to swing said finger on the pin as a fulcrum in a direction to carry said notch-engaging portion of the finger into driving engagement with the notched member, and a tripping member normally lying in the path of the finger to swing the finger against the action of said spring means out of engagement with the notched member, said aperture being so shaped with respect to said pin to permit bodily swinging movement of the finger by said spring means about the tripping member as a fulcrum and to limit the movement of said finger in a longitudinal direction whereby said notc -engaging portion of the finger is moved in a direction substantially radially of the notched member upon disengagement thereof from the notched member, and said tripping member being shiftable out of said path to release the finger to the action of the spring means whereby to reestablish a driving connection between said two members.

ARTHUR H. PETERS. 

